Spy game? Stop guessing, I really am an undercover agent!

Chapter 211 A Heroic Sacrifice
Shanghai, Fuxu Road, Ruikang Apartment...
The rain pattered against the windowpane. The second hand of the wall clock ticked away, its sound particularly jarring in the quiet room.

In a small attic not far from Ruikang Apartments, Lin Xueli was observing Ruikang Apartments through a high-powered telescope.

"How is the situation?" a deep voice came from behind. Special Envoy Zhang Jianliang paced over, his brow furrowed.

He received orders from the base in northern Jiangsu ten days ago to secretly infiltrate Shanghai from Hong Kong Island. His purpose was to rescue Lao Zhong.

Lin Xueli did not turn around, his voice so calm that it was impossible to detect a ripple: "It's worse than I imagined. The Special Higher Police have laid a tight net around the apartment, with twelve visible sentries and at least four hidden ones. Including the people in the room, there are probably around twenty-three people. Moreover, everyone who enters or leaves the apartment is under close surveillance."

Zhang Jianliang slammed his fist on the wall: "But we can't give up on Lao Zhong. He not only has a list of most of the personnel at the underground transportation station, but also many confidential documents."

"If he really can't hold on, the entire underground organization in East China will suffer a devastating blow!"

“That’s why the Special Higher Police used him as bait.” Lin Xueli finally turned around. “It was an open conspiracy. We knew it was a trap, but we had no choice but to walk into it.”

"Comrade Special Envoy, the arrow is on the bowstring and must be released. The action plan has been formulated, so let's proceed according to the original plan."

Zhang Jianliang was silent for a moment, then said softly, "Comrade Qinghu, you and I both know that the success rate of this plan is less than 30%."

"Fujita is no ordinary opponent. He has commanded the Special Higher Police for many years and is known for his cunning and treachery. I'm worried..."

“There’s no time to worry!” Lin interrupted him. “Whether it’s 30% or 10%, we have to give it our all.”

As the rain outside the window intensified, Lin Xueli turned his gaze back to the Ruikang Apartments through the binoculars.

In the rain, the Baroque building resembled a lurking beast, waiting for its prey to walk into its trap.

At 7:15 p.m., at the intersection of Foch Road and Ferguson Road.

The rain, illuminated by the neon lights, cascaded down like thousands of silver threads.

Zhou Liang stood under the awning of the bookstore on the street corner, pretending to read the newspaper in his hand, but his eyes kept glancing at the intersection. He was a veteran member of the Jiangsu-Zhejiang Action Team, experienced and well aware of the importance and danger of this mission.

In the distance, a black Buick sedan is slowly approaching.

If Lin Xueli's intelligence is correct, then this car belongs to Chen Yang, the director of the Jinling Special Service Committee.

Zhou Liang's purpose in this operation was to use the attack on his vehicle as a pretext to lure away the group of special agents outside the Ruikang Apartments.

He only had three minutes. Lin Xueli calculated it very clearly: the distance from Ruikang Apartment to here was about 800 meters.

We launched the attack here, but we have to retreat in three minutes because Ruikang Apartments is also going to launch an attack at the same time.

Zhou Liang took a deep breath, reached inside his coat, and gripped the Mauser pistol hidden under his arm.

According to Qinghu's plan, he didn't need to actually assassinate Director Chen; he only needed to create a big enough commotion to attract the attention of the secret agents.

The car was getting closer, and rain curtains hung on the windows, obscuring the view inside.

"Three, two, one," he silently calculated the distance to the car, then suddenly drew his gun and rushed out from under the awning.

"Bang! Bang!"

Two gunshots shattered the tranquility of the rainy night.

The bullet struck the Buick sedan's front tire precisely, causing the vehicle to lose control and crash into a fire hydrant on the roadside.

The enormous impact deformed the front of the car, sending water jets soaring into the sky.

"Murder! Murder!" The pre-arranged team members shouted in the crowd, and the street instantly descended into chaos.

Pedestrians scattered and fled, shops closed one after another, and whistles sounded everywhere.

Taking advantage of the chaos, Zhou Liang fired two more shots into the air, then quickly blended into the terrified crowd.

Zhou Liang led a group of three. His mission was to create chaos and force Chen Yang's car to stop. Afterward, Luo Feng, a member of the group, would run around in a panic while spreading the news that Chen Yang's car had been attacked by the Red Party.

The next plan will be handed over to Xiao Fang, the sniper who is lying in ambush on the roof of the building opposite.

His mission was to hold off the enemy for ten to fifteen minutes, buying time for the comrades in the Jiangsu and Zhejiang action teams.

As planned, Luo Feng ran in the opposite direction after hearing the gunshot.

At the same time, Yokoji Matsui, who works at Ruikang Apartments, also received a report.

"Team leader, a shooting has occurred at the intersection of Foch Road and Ferguson Road. The target is Director Chen's car."

"The Special Affairs Committee agents on the outer perimeter, led by Captain Ling Jing, have all gone to provide reinforcements."

Matsui frowned slightly: "Chen Yang? What's he doing there? Shouldn't he be attending a banquet in Hongkou tonight?"

The man said in a deep voice, "I don't know, but the scene confirms it's his car. The attacker used a standard weapon, and the method was professional."

Matsui pondered for a moment, then suddenly sneered: "What a feint! 'Blue Fox' has indeed made his move."

"At this time, the Red Party would assassinate Chen Yang. They couldn't even see such an obvious plot."

"This is clearly an attempt to distract us."

"Little Mountain Lord, pass down the order: strengthen security at all locations, especially back alleys and side streets. The real operation is about to begin."

At 7:18 p.m., Ruikang Apartments suddenly fell into darkness.

"The power's out?" In room 203, Yoko Nanada instinctively gripped the handle of her gun.

Matsui Yokoji, however, remained unusually calm: "They've finally arrived." At that moment, Sun Yong, disguised as a power company repairman, also saw the red flag appear on the roof of the coffee shop across the street.

This is a signal for him to take action.

Sun Yong darted into the bathroom and quickly locked the door. He took out a palm-sized metal device from the bottom of his toolbox—a simple smoke generator based on Soviet technology, capable of producing a large amount of smoke in a short time.

"Whoosh." The sound of a police whistle rang out on the street. The patrol car of the French Concession Police Station arrived as scheduled and stopped in front of the apartment.

Four police officers got out of their vehicle to check on the power outage, and a dispute ensued with plainclothes officers from the Special Higher Police at the entrance.

"Now!" Sun Yong turned on the smoke generator, plugged it into the ventilation duct, and then quickly climbed out of the window, sliding down the drainpipe to the second-floor balcony.

Thick smoke quickly spread from the ventilation openings. Although there were no lights, it didn't stop people from seeing the smoke spreading everywhere along the second-floor ventilation openings.

"Fire!" someone shouted in Japanese.

Inside room 203, Matsui Yokoji finally changed color: "What's going on?"

Yoko Minami rushed outside and saw thick smoke billowing from the ventilation duct: "Team leader, there might really be a fire! We must evacuate immediately!"

Matsui gritted his teeth: "That 'Blue Fox' really pulled this stunt! Notify all teams to move the target according to the pre-arranged route!"

Two Special Higher Police agents in the room roughly grabbed Old Zhong and put a hood over his head.
Two agents, one on each side, grabbed Old Zhong and quickly headed towards the back door.

Yoko Minami led the way, while Matsui stayed in Room 203 to oversee the overall operation.

Two black sedans were parked in the back alley, their engines already running.

Rain pattered against the car roof, making a monotonous sound.

Nantian cautiously scanned both sides of the alley. Visibility was low on this rainy night, but she sensed something was wrong—it was too quiet, not even the usual meows of stray cats.

"Watch out for ambushes!" she whispered a warning, raising her gun as a signal.

At that very moment, gunfire erupted!
More than ten members of the Jiangsu-Zhejiang Action Team, who were lying in ambush in the buildings on both sides, opened fire at the same time, and bullets rained down on the Special Higher Police team.

The two agents who were the first to be hit fell to the ground, their blood mingling with the rainwater and spreading on the bluestone slabs.

"Cover! Find cover!" Nantian shouted as he returned fire, while directing the remaining men to retreat.

The well-trained Special Higher Police action team quickly organized a counterattack, using vehicles and corners as cover, with fierce and precise firepower.

Old Zhong was pinned to the ground, and bullets whizzed past his head.

Rat-a-tat-tat, the dense sound of machine guns rang out continuously; although Old Zhong couldn't see, he could hear the intense sounds of the exchange of fire and the screams of those hit.

His years of underground work experience told him that the operation had failed, and the Special Higher Police's firepower and reaction speed far exceeded expectations.

"For victory!" Suddenly, a rough voice rang out from not far away.

Old Zhong's heart skipped a beat; it was the voice of Zhao Dayong, the deputy captain of the Shanghai action team.

Immediately following was a huge explosion, and Zhao Dayong detonated the grenade on his body, temporarily suppressing the Special Higher Police's firepower.

"Charge! Save Old Zhong!" someone shouted again.

The gunfire intensified.

Old Zhong could hear the sounds of bodies falling to the ground; some were Japanese, and some were his own comrades.

Tears mingled with the rain as they streamed down his face. He knew that every gunshot could mean the loss of yet another young life.

This pointless sacrifice must be stopped! Old Zhong struggled to lift his head and observe the battle situation through the gap in his hood.

The operatives were pinned down at the alley entrance by heavy fire and were unable to get close.

The Special Higher Police are reorganizing their formation; once they encircle them, everyone involved in the operation will be doomed.

At this critical moment, Lao Zhong made a decision.

He used all his strength to break free from the hands holding him down and staggered to his feet.

"Don't worry about me! Get out of here!" he shouted hoarsely, rushing towards the alley entrance. This action surprised everyone, even Nantian Yangzi was stunned.

A bullet whizzed past him and struck his right leg.

Old Zhong staggered a bit, but still insisted on standing.

He knew he couldn't leave alive, but in his final moments, he had to accomplish two tasks: first, to ensure his comrades evacuated in time to minimize casualties; and second, to deliver that crucial intelligence.

That's the list of intelligence agents for the Shanghai underground transportation station.
Old Zhong took a deep breath and, with his last ounce of strength, shouted out the set of numbers he had memorized:
"7662-5362!"

The shouts were particularly clear in the brief lull of the gunfire, echoing through the rainy alleyway.

Immediately afterwards, a series of bullets struck his chest.

Old Zhong felt a sharp pain and fell backward.

In his final moments of blurred consciousness, he seemed to see a faint light in the distance, like a lone lamp in the dark night, stubbornly flickering in the rain.

Then, everything returned to darkness.
(End of this chapter)